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To Those Whose Hope Is in the Star of His Appearing:
So many of you are thinking of new beginnings, so many of you are caught up in the delight of outer festivities, that I must, in the name of cosmic grace, caution men, admonish men, and guide them, as children of our heart, into the realization that in reality it is the birth of God in man which is celebrated as the Christ Mass and that the opportunities of this season are given to men that they may literally absolve themselves from darkness.
In the great brilliance of the burst of light celebrated as the Christ Mass, the darkness without may beckon the flame within to sing of new beginnings. Then, with the building bricks of the Spirit solidly placed upon the foundation of God's heart and transcendentally mounting into the blue of his will, the soul shall rise as a tower of strength, facing all outer conditions and saying to them: "If you are not of God, you have no power!" - for only God can bring eternal life into the human heart. And as I utter these words, I envision millions among you reading my message and cherishing my Spirit as kindred to your own.
One of the great tragedies of human existence is the lack of the miracle of belief, the lack of faith in the things of the Spirit which are all around you as the best gifts of God. For these you ought to be thankful always, and your thanks should be a bouquet of fragrant thoughts offered unto God.
Many are concerned with the passing moment, either with the bane of harsh experience or the blessing of a family get-together; and many are involved in making others happy. Let all think of how they can make God happy; for, whereas he has given so much, he himself has often received so little.
Oh, I know full well that there are those who will say, "God is not a person." May I say to all that as God is a Spirit, his Spirit is omnipresent and personal to each manifestation that will receive him. And the reflection of his gladness in their eyes, of his hopes in their hearts, of his ongoingness in their spirits, is the fragrance of foreverness.
To forego the opportunity of receiving him in the person of the Christ is to delete from your consciousness one of the most glorious facets of individuality: the opportunity of giving. For lodged in his heart is a permanent abundance in which all may share in varying portions. Without this abundance the soul would indeed be barren, but with it each individual may find that the meeting of his needs is the joy of God himself.
There are those who are momentarily bereft of attention; there are those who are deliberately ignored; there are those who pursue a way that is far from the Father's goal. Yet, all of these belong in the caravan that climbs the mountain of faith and goodwill.
I see clearly a vision of Christ-intent for a world that slumbers 'neath the snows, not yet knowing the fullness of its own purpose. And whereas I had thought this year to warn the students of the ways of error which many of them so clearly see, I spoke unto myself and I said, How best can I serve them all? For I have warned, I have admonished, I have encouraged.
And as I thought to speak in this wise, several of the ascended brethren in white came to me, and it was their sincere feeling that we should but offer the bouquet of our love to the soul of God within each one, the soul that only God can awaken in man, to show him how great is his love.
And so, whereas we have often lamented the ways of the world - which are not God's ways;1 whereas we have often sought to bring men to a higher way - a way of splendor that so few have known; and whereas the chastening of God has brought forth much fruit, I choose to vary my approach this year and to appeal from the depth of my heart to the heart of each one - intimately, tenderly:
Let the God within awaken man, let him show the world the error of their ways, let him show the individual the splendor of his strength, let him reveal himself. You who need him more than you know, listen to him. Develop the habit of looking for him behind the face of outer manifestation.
In all of the scenes and thoughts of your heart, myriad and tumbling, the way of his loveliness is the hope of the world. The miracle of his coming into the life of the individual is a joy to behold. It is almost to be likened to a seed sown in the heart of the earth that, nourished and watered, presses upward toward the light. It is the strength born of devotion to his love that seems to be lost and fading in man. But, coming once again into the unfailing strength of God, they shall know the peace that is born out of service to the Christ in each one.
Our way is the way of peace, but those who have studied the long struggle of mankind's misadventures know the need to be rational and practical in the world of form as we are in the world of Spirit. Never let your ideals destroy, but let them implement within you those aspects of your being that shall keep alive in the world the potential for God-realization, the freedom of the soul that can go forth and inflame itself with the love of his star, with his love of life, with his zest for truth, with his awakening always dawning in the memory.
And thus the appointed time of the day of his appearing shall be shortened, and many shall see him as he is; and because they see him, they will believe more in themselves and in the purposes of life. The destiny of man will be merged into the completeness of the grace of the universal Christ Child, nestling in every mother's arms as her own babe and lodging in every father's heart as the divine seed.
And the child shall communicate to all the way of a world that rises into the twilight and reaches for the dawn in which a new opportunity and a new way of thought, high on the road Godward, will seal the destiny of a brightened world in the peace of universal hope.